B&M will be opening a new store in Bishop’s Stortford next month, it has been confirmed.

The high street retailer had remained tight-lipped about a possible move to the town amid months of mounting speculation.

However, the Herts and Essex Observer is now able to reveal that plans for the new store have been set in stone.

The doors are set to open at the former Poundland on South Street on Wednesday, 21 February.

The store will sell a range of homeware, health, beauty, food and drink items

B&M, which bills itself as one of the country’s “leading variety retailers”, has said they will create more more than 40 jobs in the town with the store’s opening.

The news has been welcomed by the Mayor of Bishop's Stortford Colin Woodward, who said: "I welcome new business in Bishop's Stortford and as we don't have many empty units compared to the national average they have done well to find a unit that suits their needs.

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"Since the refurbishment of Jackson Square, which saw the departure of the popular QD and the old Woolworths site and the more recent changes to Poundland resulting in their closure, I think that there may be a gap in the market that B&M may fill."

The company has been advertising a store manager position in the Bishop’s Stortford area as far back as October.

Poundland closed its doors last September

At that time shoppers welcomed the idea of the store's arrival, with Jason Walters and Marvin Welch saying that B&M would help keep a "good variety of shops" in the town.

However, at the time a spokeswoman was keen to downplay the speculation, saying that they sometimes advertised roles for areas that they were interested in but that there were “no committed plans”.

Vacancies for a deputy manager, warehouse operatives and cleaners are now being advertised ahead of the opening.

Shoppers Jason Walters and Marvin Welch thought that B&M would help Stortford provide "a good variety of shops"

A range of branded goods will be sold inside the new store, including food and drink, toys, health and beauty, homeware and pet products.

A spokeswoman for the chain said: “We’re feeling really positive about the creation of even more jobs for local people and we hope customers are going to be delighted with their new store.